Talking Sense

MPR News and the nonprofit organization Braver Angels have created Talking Sense to help Minnesotans have hard conversations, better.

Talking Sense is a reporting project that explores the roots of polarization in communities, families and homes, and looks at how Minnesotans are navigating these divisive times. It’s also a series of live events and online tools that help Minnesotans have challenging political conversations without letting the need to change minds stand in the way of preserving important relationships. 

Has political polarization affected your family or community? Send us your Talking Sense story at talk@mprnews.org

Mariah Levison and Rob Fersh help people find consensus on how to solve divisive issues, ranging from prison reform to what art should hang in the Minnesota Capitol. Learn how they do it in this MPR News Talking Sense conversation hosted by MPR News correspondent Catharine Richert.
A cancellable feast? When politics sabotage Thanksgiving
With Thanksgiving coming up this week, holiday season is officially underway. But for some, getting together with family and friends feels challenging this year after a divisive election.
Why Trump’s immigration rhetoric appeals to one first-time Latino voter in Minnesota
President-elect Donald Trump made notable inroads with Latino voters this year, particularly among young men. One voter’s family history provides a window into Trump’s appeal.
To get through the election, 2 therapists prescribe connection
At least one study shows the 2024 election has spiked unusually high levels of anxiety in many people. Here’s how two family and marriage therapists suggest we can lower the temperature in our minds and in our relationships, regardless of the election’s outcome.
A Minnesota farmer and a college student walk a mile in each other’s news
This election season, MPR News invited its audience to learn more about people on the other side of the political spectrum through an initiative called “Walk a Mile in My News.” Two of our participants, a Democrat and a Republican, swapped their go-to news sources and then let us record their conversations. They had far more in common than they expected.